Myrtle Beach Pelicans suffer worst loss of the season to Carolina Mudcats

MYRTLE BEACH, SC JULY 19, 2014 – The Myrtle Beach Pelicans, Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Texas Rangers, dropped a 17-2 decision to the Carolina Mudcats the first game of a three-game series on Saturday night at TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Ballpark. Carolina registered a season-high seventeen runs and eighteen hits, which included a cycle from Jerrud Sabourin, who had five hits on the night.

The Mudcats (18-12, 47-50) jumped on the board first in the second inning. With one out, Myrtle Beach southpaw Luis Parra walked Jeremy Lucas. Alex Monsalve then doubled down the third base line to put Carolina out in front, scoring Lucas all the way from first.

Myrtle Beach answered right back in the bottom of the second inning. Preston Beck took Carolina starter Ryan Merritt deep to right field for his ninth home run of the season, tying the game at 1-1.

The tie did not last for long; Carolina dominated on Saturday, handing the Pelicans their worst loss of the season. Every Mudcats batter collected at least one hit, and seven of the nine scored at least one run. Carolina put together two six-run innings, in the third and fifth inning, en route to a season-best 17-run effort. It was also the most runs allowed by the Birds this year.

With one out in the third inning and Todd Hankins on first, Erik Gonzalez singled to right to put runners on the corners. On a wild pitch by Parra, Gonzalez advanced to second. Hankins scored on a fielder’s choice to put Carolina head 3-1. In the next at bat, Yandy Diaz tripled and plated Gonzalez. Parra then walked Lucas to put runners on the corners for Monsalve, who connected on a three-run blast to left field. Sabourin followed with a solo shot to right field. The back-to-back homers extended the Mudcats lead to 7-1 after three innings.

Carolina started off the six-run inning in the fifth with a solo homer from Lucas, the third home run allowed by Parra. The Mudcats strung together four more hits and five more runs in the inning off of the Pelicans starter and reliever Kevin Pucetas.

The Pelicans (16-14, 60-38) did not score again until the seventh inning when Jorge Alfaro hit a solo shot to right field, his eleventh home run of the season, but the Birds were still behind 16-2.

In addition to Sabourin’s home run in the second, he singled in the fifth and sixth, tripled in the seventh, and completed the cycle in the ninth with a ground rule double down the left field line. He is the second player in the league to hit for the cycle this season, Frederick’s Mike Yastrzemski did so on July 5.

Merritt (10-3) pitched six and two-thirds innings, fanning a season-high nine batters and allowing four hits. He did not allow a walk on the night although he did hit two batters. The southpaw is the first pitcher in the Carolina league to reach ten wins on the year, moving ahead of the Pelicans Andrew Faulkner (9). Parra (7-6) suffered the loss for the Pelicans.

The Birds look to start with a clean slate in game two of a three-game series with the Mudcats on Sunday night at 6:05 p.m. at TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Ballpark. Myrtle Beach sends Ryan Bores (0-1, 3.55 ERA) to the hill against Mudcats starter Michael Peoples (6-7, 4.65 ERA). The game can be heard live on WRNN AM 1450 ESPN Myrtle Beach, on the TuneIn Radio App, and via the MiLB First Pitch App, beginning with the Hampton Inn Pregame Show at 5:45 p.m.

Sunday will feature post-game fireworks, courtesy of East Coast Pyrotechnics and Star 92.1.

Season Seats, Mini Plans, Flex Books, and single game tickets are available to see the Pelicans in 2014. For more information on tickets, please call (843) 918-6002, e-mail info@myrtlebeachpelicans.com, visit www.MyrtleBeachPelicans.com, or visit the Pelicans box office, which is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

About the Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans are the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Texas Rangers and play their home games at TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Ballpark in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The park was named the best in the Carolina League by Baseball America in 2009 and the overall experience ranked third in all of Minor League Baseball by Stadium Journey in 2013. The Pelicans earned co-Mills Cup championship honors in their inaugural 1999 season, won the outright title in 2000, and has garnered seven half-season Southern Division titles, most recently in the first half of 2013. For more information on the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, please contact Nathan Barnett by calling (843) 918-6080 or emailing NBarnett@MyrtleBeachPelicans.com.

About the author

Michael "Beach Mick" Hudson is the founder and Editor of Beach Carolina Magazine. Living along the coast of North Carolina, Mike has a passion for the beach and loves to bring news and events of the Carolinas to others around the world.

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